Numerous document trays have been developed and utilized in office environments, such as for support on the top of a desk or worksurface, to permit storage of papers and like documents therein. Many such trays are also part of an assembly which, either through the tray structure itself, or through a separate frame or support structure, enables a plurality of such trays to be disposed in generally vertically stacked relationship to provide increased storage while minimizing the worksurface area utilized.
The present invention relates to an improved construction for trays of this general type and, more specifically, to a tray construction which enables several such trays to be disposed vertically one above the other and at least partially nested one within another, either when the trays are empty or contain only a small number of documents therein, to permit compact storage on a worksurface top while utilizing minimal space, and which additionally permits separation of documents through use of multiple trays. This tray construction in addition allows the trays to be vertically crossed-stacked one on top of another to provide for desired vertical separation and hence at least limited visibility and access to the individual trays in the stack, while at the same time providing significant storage capability and document separation while minimizing the amount of space utilized on the worksurface top.
In the improved tray of this invention, the tray has an enlarged but generally rectangular bottom wall which, at opposite longitudinal ends, is joined to upwardly extending end walls which are sloped outwardly as they project upwardly. The opposite sides of the bottom wall are joined to side walls which project upwardly, with these side walls also sloping outwardly as they project upwardly. The upper free edges of the outwardly-sloped side walls terminate in generally horizontal flanges which extend lengthwise along the side wall and project outwardly through a small distance. The end and side walls are preferably configured so as to not directly join together, thereby leaving open corners which improve visibility and access to the interior of the tray. The bottom wall of the tray on the bottom surface also has a plurality of positioning projections extending downwardly therefrom and spaced apart longitudinally along the tray by a distance which approximately corresponds to the transverse spacing between the upper edges of the side walls. Two vertically adjacent trays can be oriented in crossing or transverse relationship whereby the bottom wall of an upper tray in the vicinity of the respective end walls rests on the top flanges associated with the side walls of a next lower tray to permit vertical stacking of two or more trays, and the positioning projections on the upper tray project downwardly between the side walls of the lower tray to prevent transverse dislodgement of the upper tray.
The structural and functional advantages of the tray according to the present invention, and other objects and purposes thereof, will be apparent to persons upon reading the following specification and inspecting the accompanying drawings.